Does Permanent Mean Forever?

Problem Scenario

Often times, people tend to complain that Sharpies fade away after a long period of time. For example, if the object with Sharpie written on it is left outside, or if the Sharpie just fades, especially when it's written on plastic, then this experiment is to see how permanent markers really are.

Broad Question

How permanent are permanent markers?

Specific Question

Does the color of a permanent marker affect how long it stays permanent?

Hypothesis

The color of a permanent marker does affect how long it lasts. If the color is dark, like black or blue, the ink will leave a heavier line, making it harder for the solvents to remove.

Graph of Hypothesis

Variables

Independent Variable:

Sharpie Color

Dependent Variable:

How long the Sharpie stays permanent

Variables That Need To Be Controlled:

Solvents.(Water, vinegar, nail polish remover, hairspray)

Vocabulary List That Needs Explanation

Permanent-

Lasting or intended to last or remain unchanged indefinitely.

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General Plan

For my project I am taking a piece of plexiglas and writing on it with various colors of Sharpies. I am drawing a three inch line for each color, four times. I then have 4 different solvents I am using to test if the marker will stay permanent. I am timing the process for each color and each solvent and comparing them to see which marker is the most permanent.

Potential Problems And Solutions

One potential problem is that when I am applying the solvents to the sharpie, I could use too much pressure on one color then on another. A solution to this problem would be to try my best to distribute the pressure evenly to each color.

Safety Or Environmental Concerns

Sharpies can be toxic when ingested.

Experimental Design

Controlled, manipulated experiment

What is your experimental unit?

My experimental unit is 8 Sharpies

Number Of Trials:

1

Number Of Subjects In Each trial:

6

Number of Observations:

The number of observations I will take during this experiment will be 5.

When data will be collected

March 5/6

Where will data be collected?:

The data will be collected at my house where there will be no disturbances.

Resources and Budget Table

Item	Number needed	Where I will get this	Cost
Sharpies	7	Staples	$10
Water	3 bottles	Home	$0
Vinegar	1 bottle	Home	$0
Nail Polish Remover	1 bottle	Home	$0
Q-tips	1 box	Home	$0
Stopwatch	1	Home	$0
Hairspray	1 can	Home	$0
Plexiglas	1 sheet	Home Depot	$15

Detailed Procedure

1. Take a piece of plexiglas
2. Take each Sharpie and draw a 3 inch line, using a ruler.
3.Wait for the Sharpie to dry before you start.
4. Start with vinegar, then nail polish remover, hairspray, and end with water.
5.Take a Q-tip and saturate one end in the solvent.
6. Rub the Q-tip on one of the Sharpie lines, don't add too much, or too little pressure.
7 Time how long it takes for the Sharpie to begin to fade.
8. Repeat steps 2-7 for each solvent and sharpie color.

Diagram

Photo List

Time Line

February 1, Timeline and Procedure Due
February 3, Set up Lab Notebook and start experiment preparation
February 5/6, Start on background research
February 11,Finish Background Research
March 5/6, Preform my experiment
March 8, Analyze Data
March 10, Start Poster
March 11, Discussion, Abstract, Data Table, Conclusion, started
March 15, Discussion, Abstract, Data Table, Conclusion done,
March 22, Poster DONE!
March 26-28, Prepare For Science Fair
March 29, KMS Science Fair.
May 9, Regional Science Fair.

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Data Table

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Data Analysis

All Raw Data

Graphs

Photos

Results

After preforming my experiment, I found that the black Sharpie was the most permanent. Vinegar took the longest to remove the black, while nail polish remover took the shortest amount of time. The least permanent marker turned out to be purple, the vinegar took the longest to remove it and the nail polish remover took the shortest. This pattern continued throughout the experiment, and is mostly the same for all the colors. In the beginning, my hypothesis graph showed that the black Sharpie would end up being the most permanent, and that the yellow would be the least permanent. At first, with the water and vinegar, the marker took at least 45 seconds to start to fade away. That applied with all colors. Once I put on the nail polish remover, it took one swipe to remove the Sharpie. The same went for the hairspray.

Conclusion

My final conclusion is that yes, the color of a Sharpie does affect how long they stay permanent. My original hypothesis was only half true, the black was the most permanent, but when it came to the least permanent, I was wrong. I guessed that yellow would be the least, but it turned out that purple was the least permanent on the plexi-glass. My graph shows that the darker colors, black, red, and orange, and blue, were the most permanent.

Discussion

The experiment overall showed a couple patterns. Every time I applied the vinegar or water, it took at least 45 seconds for the Sharpie to start to fade away. The nail polish remover and hairspray only took one swipe to completely get rid of the Sharpie. As for how long they stayed permanent, the time was short for all colors. The lighter colors, (yellow, pink, and purple) were in about the same range of time, while the darker colors are in the same range of time. The relationship between my independent and dependent variable wasn't that strong. In my graphs, you can see that the relationship between them wasn't strong, they all were about in the same time range. Aside from the lighter colors, as said before, had a smaller amount of time than the darker colors.I could answer my experiment question. The color did affect how long the marker stayed permanent, but it didn't affect it a lot. During my experiment there weren't any problems or errors that occurred There are numerous ways that this project can be taken to the next level. I tested how permanent the Sharpies were on plexi-glass, (which is similar to glass and plastic) but I did not test how permanent they are on paper, wood, or other items people write on. If there is a way that that could be tested, then it would be more helpful to people who write things like signs, or if there are construction workers that write measurements on the items.

Benefit to Community and/or Science

This project doesn't have that much of a benefit to science.

Background Research

A marker can be considered permanent if it adheres to most surfaces and/or is water resistant, or uses dyes or pigments. The dyes or pigments used,
The dyes or pigments used, which give the ink color (colorants), determine how well a marking will resist fading. Pigmented inks resist fading the best. The combination of ingredients used in the ink formulation gives the ink permanent properties. Each permanent marker that is manufactured may have one or both of the characteristics that were mentioned above.
With outdoor exposure on a nonporous surface, the marks from a dye base marker will be gone in perhaps three to four months. With indoor exposure on a porous surface, like artist canvas or paper, however marks from a dye base marker last several years.
Resins or surface's give the ink the ability to adhere to various surfaces. Thus, there are markers for non-porous and glossy surfaces, markers for oily or wet surfaces and markers that can withstand extreme heat.
The solvents that are used mix all of the ingredients together, or dissolve them to form the ink. The solvents used also determine the solvent resistance of the markings. Various solvents used in inks are alcohol, ketone, xylene and glycol ethers.
Plexiglas is a transparent thermoplastic, which is often used as a lightweight or shatter resistant alternative to glass. It is also referred to as acrylic glass.

References

"FAQs." Sharpie Frequently Asked Questions. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2013

Abstract

My broad question was, "How permanent are permanent markers?", after thinking about how I could take this experiment farther, I wondered if the color of a Sharpie could affect how long the marker stays permanent. I hypothesized that black would be the most permanent, and yellow would be the least permanent.To put my own twist on the project, I decided to test which solvent could remove the Sharpie faster. I used vinegar, water, hairspray, and nail polish remover. I timed how long it took for the Sharpie to fade when I applied the the liquids with pressure. I preformed the experiment with the same thought in my head. I tested 8 different colored Sharpies. It didn't take long to realize that half of my hypothesis was true, and the other half was wrong. By the end, black was the most permanent on the plexi-glass, and purple was the least permanent. In a way, the color does affect how long the marker will stay on the object. However, I tested this experiment on plexi-glass, which is a substitute for glass or plastic. The answer to this question might be different if I tested it on other surfaces, like paper, or wood, etc. Prior to doing the experiment, I researched approximately how long Sharpies tend to last, the answer was three to four months if it is exposed outside, and several years if it has indoor exposure. My final conclusion is that yes, the color of a Sharpie does affect how long it stays permanent.